Obama reminds nation of what it owes veterans

‘Still at war,’ he notes on Memorial Day

Brittany Jacobs kisses her son Chris near the grave site of her late husband, Christopher Jacobs, at Section 60 on Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, Monday, May 27, 2013. Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are buried in Section 60. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)
Brittany Jacobs kisses her son Chris near the grave site of her late husband, Christopher Jacobs, at Section 60 on Memorial Day at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, Monday, May 27, 2013. Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are buried in Section 60. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama paid homage to the nation’s military - especially troops serving in Afghanistan - on Monday, using his traditional Memorial Day address at Arlington National Cemetery to exhort Americans to honor their “sacred obligation” to veterans and to remind the country that “our nation is still at war.”

Obama’s remarks, delivered under warm, sunny skies after he participated in a somber wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns, came on the heels of his address last week on counter terrorism policy, in which he said he hoped to move the nation off a war footing.

On Monday, Obama made glancing reference to the policy speech he gave Thursday, in what seemed to be an effort to tamp down Republican criticism that, as he prepares to withdraw troops from Afghanistan, he had declared a premature end to the war on terrorism.

“This time next year, we will mark the final Memorial Day of our war in Afghanistan,” Obama said, “and so as I said last week, America stands at a crossroads. But even as we turn a page on a decade of conflict, even as we look forward, let us never forget, as we gather here today, that our nation is still at war.”

Earlier in the morning, he and first lady Michelle Obama hosted a breakfast at the White House with “Gold Star” families of service members who have been killed.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined military leaders and others at the Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in Manhattan. He later encouraged New Yorkers to celebrate the day and the good weather but also “remember the sacrifice that was made so that we could be here.”

In South Sioux City, Neb., a statue honoring a Navy dog handler was unveiled in his hometown. The statue of John Douangdara and his dog, Bart, is part of a 5-acre dog park that’s named for Douangdara. Petty Officer 1st Class Douangdara died along with 29 other Americans in August 2011 when a military helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan.

Across much of New England, several days of heavy rain gave way to sunny skies for parades in towns large and small.

Visiting the cemetery, whose rows of perfectly aligned white headstones spread across the rolling hills of Northern Virginia across the Potomac River from the capital, has been a Memorial Day ritual for many presidents. Obama described the cemetery as “a sacred place where we honor our fallen heroes,” contrasting it with the “city of monuments” across the river.

“It is here on this hallowed ground,” the president said, “where we choose to build a monument to a constant thread in the American character - the truth that our nation endures because it has always been home to men and women who are willing to give their all, lay down their lives to preserve and protect this land that we love.”

Obama, noting that this year is the 60th anniversary of the end of fighting in Korea, said he wanted to give a “special salute” to veterans of that conflict. But he lamented that too many Americans these days were removed from the sacrifice of war, perhaps because with an all-volunteer military, service is a choice, not a requirement.

“Today, most Americans are not directly touched by war,” the president said. “As a consequence, not all Americans may always see or fully grasp the depths of sacrifice, the profound costs that are made in our name.”

Less than 1 percent of the population of more than 313 million people serves in the military, officials have said.

In the speech, Obama reflected on the human toll of armed conflict, noting that “every loss is devastating” for the parents who lose a child, the husbands and wives who lose a partner and the children who lose a parent.

As the one who has final say on whether to send troops into combat, Obama said he feels the losses, too.

“I feel it every time I meet a wounded warrior, every time I visit Walter Reed and every time, I grieve with a Gold Star family,” he said, referring to families whose loved ones were killed during military service.

“Let it be our task, every single one of us, to honor the strength and the resolve and the love these brave Americans felt for each other and for our country,” the president said. “Let us never forget to always remember and to be worthy of the sacrifice they make in our name.”

He went on to quote a letter from a soldier who said he was “concerned that our work in Afghanistan is fading from memory,” and another from the mother of two Marines, one serving in Afghanistan, who pleaded with him not to forget about her son.

“A mother’s plea: ‘Please don’t forget,’” Obama said. “On this Memorial Day, and every day, let us be true and meet that promise.”

The president went on to bless the troops, and America.

After Obama finished speaking, a bugler played taps, whose unofficial, and unsung, lyrics are a soldier’s reminder: “All is well, safely rest.” Information for this article was contributed by Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times; and by David Sharp, Janet McConnaughey and Darlene Superville of The Associated Press.

Front Section, Pages 1 on 05/28/2013

Upcoming Events